Trevor McFedries & Sara Decou are the co-founders of Brud and the creators of the first computer-generated social media influencer, Lil Miquela, in 2016. She has since amassed a large social media following and has donned brands including Chanel, Burberry and Fendi.

Lil Miquela is not a person but a strikingly human-like computer-generated image. A self-proclaimed 19-year-old robot, she is one of a growing number of virtual influencers that are garnering a prolific following online and capturing the hearts of their digital audiences.

Virtual influencers are created using AI and CGI (Computer Generated Imagery) technology. They are designed to appear and behave like real human influencers, but they are entirely computer-generated.

Mid-Tier Echelon: Based on figures from this August 2023 WIRED piece, AI influencers Noonoouri, Leya Love, Imma, Qai Qai, and Superplastic's Guggimon—all with between 300,000 to 1,000,000 followers—are allegedly generating $100,000-$200,000 annually. The average revenue per follower for these five comes to $0.34.